It's an action-packed weekend coming up in Europe, with Alice McKennis taking 16th in the Garmisch downhill training run and Lindsey Vonn seventh. Steven Nyman won his second training run in Kvitfjell and looks for another World Cup win on Saturday.

Laurenne Ross (Bend, OR) captured the first U.S. title of her career with a mere .01 second super G victory over Stacey Cook (Mammoth Mountain, CA) Friday at the Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships at Squaw Valley.

The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association named a group of 15 elite athletes to compete at the 2013 FIS Alpine Junior World Ski Championship scheduled for Feb. 19-28 at Le Massif and Mont Ste Anne, Quebec.

All eyes will be watching Mikaela Shiffrin, Julia Mancuso and potentially Lindsey Vonn when the Nature Valley Aspen Winternational takes over the historic Colorado ski town Thanksgiving weekend with a pair of Audi FIS Alpine World Cup tech races.

The speed training season is officially underway in South American as the women's U.S. Ski Team, including Olympic gold medalists Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) and Julia Mancuso (Squaw Valley, CA), begin their second week in Portillo.

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Abby Ghent has the U.S. Ski Team in her blood as the daughter of former U.S. teamers. She also has an incredible base coming from the same Ski and Snowboard Club Vail program that helped produce both Lindsey Vonn and retired great Sarah Schleper.

Ghent was the female fastest super G skier on the NorAm circuit in 2014 and now has a shiny new World Cup super G start for the 2015 World Cup season. Adding to the prize is a goal of making the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships Team. Why? The event is being hosted a few miles from her home at Beaver Creek, CO. Big event on home snow – yes, it could be a very big year.

ABBY SAYSThis season is going to be a new experience. I will be doing a lot more traveling to get to Europa Cups here, World Cups there, and NorAms at home and in Canada. I have different goals for different circuits. I will be competing with a new pool of girls in World Cups, getting experience and hopefully some top 30 results. For Europa Cups, I would like to get some top-five results in both downhill and super G, and top 15's in GS. In the NorAm circuit I want to win the overall (most cumulative points at the end of the season), which will require a podium result in the downhills, super Gs, and GSs that I race, and top-15 finishes in the slaloms. These are lofty goals, but I like to challenge myself.

FIRST TRACKSGhent's parents were both ski racers and both coaches. Her mom was on the U.S. Ski Team and her dad was a coach for the U.S. Ski Team. Both older sisters are into skiing as well, with Erika racing (and winning an NCAA title) for Colorado University, which also happens to be Dad's alma mater. Christa was a racer, but knee injuries caught up with her career.

OFF THE SNOW She's a big fan of country music, beach time and hanging with boyfriend and Canadian Ski Team athlete Dustin Cook. You may also find her doing some singing with the U.S. women’s speed team band that includes Laurenne Ross, Stacey Cook and others. Motto: "Are you working harder than your competition."